Many organizations face a talent shortage when attempting to fill available job positions. This shortage can be attributed in part to the aging population of baby boomers, the decline of adult women re-entering the workforce, and younger people remaining in school for a longer period of time. Even with the advent of electronic job posting boards and networking sites, it is difficult for many organizations to reach a desired group of individuals with information regarding the organization and available positions within it. Further, existing systems fail to limit access to individuals that the organization has specifically identified such as: alumni, retired employees, previous contractors, or qualified referrals.
In a common electronic job posting scenario, an organization seeking to fill an available position may enter information into an online form from a job posting service. This information may range from very basic information, such as a brief job description and employer contact information, to very detailed information, such as specific duties, working hours, salary, benefits, etc. This information is then posted online in a searchable manner accessible either to the general public or to a limited number of job seekers that subscribe to the job posting service. The employer then receives responses from interested members of the general public or subscribing users of the job posting service and may set up interviews with individuals that appear to be a good fit for the job.
However, the organization seeking to fill an available position lacks control over which individuals are able to access the job posting. Further, the common electronic job posting scenario lacks the ability to customize the site to maximize the value and convenience of the site to the client and associated users, thereby motivating additional users to join the client's community. Importantly, previous efforts to integrate electronic job posting boards and networking sites have failed to create a community that is custom-made for a specific organization that seeks to fill available positions from a specific group of individuals.